Jul 6 Candied Lemons

To start, slice one lemon thinly with a mandolin or a very sharp knife then pop them in a pot of boiling water to blanch. It is important not to put lemon slices into rapidly boiling water as this will destroy the delicate inner flesh of the lemon so make sure you turn your water down to a gentle simmer. This will soften the lemons and also take out some of the bitterness from the pith. After about a minute or so, when the pith of the lemon has softened, use a slotted spoon to remove the lemon slices and place them gently in an ice bath.

Pop a large pot on the stove and add in 1 cup of water and 1 1/2 cups of granulated sugar over medium heat and bring it up to a simmer. Turn the heat down to low and and leave the lemon slices to soak and cook slowly for one hour. When your hour is up, check to see that the lemons have gone clear and look gorgeous, glossy and transparent.

Set wax paper or parchment paper (not important just helps with clean up) onto a large pan then set a wire rack on top of this. Use a slotted spoon to remove the lemons from the syrup and place them gently onto the rack. Leave them to cool for about hours. This will leave the lemons to harden up slightly and the syrup that has soaked into them to become very thick and sticky. Leave them to sit out overnight and the lemons will harden up even more.